Naval Hospital opens special care nursery

Published: Tuesday, July 2, 2013 at 04:45 PM.

“We are not an intensive care unit such as New Hanover,” Lane said. “We’re still going to be referring babies … but we expect to keep about half of what we used to transfer.”

The goal of the unit is to take care of more babies and limit the amount transferred to outside facilities, said Cmdr. Cynthia Schultz, a neonatologist from Sneads Ferry.

“Not only are the families stressed because their newborn baby is sick but also because they often have to travel from Camp Lejeune to a hospital an hour and a half away,” Schultz said. “Keeping … the families together will help with their bonding and allow us to provide excellent care.”

The nursery’s opening has been approximately six years in the making and will save approximately $108,000 worth of tax dollars by not having to transport the infants to another facility, said Schultz. Base officials could not be reached to confirm the cost of the new nursery.

New equipment includes self-warming beds, which will keep the baby at an optimal temperatures, and biliruben lights, which treats jaundice.

Prior to Tuesday’s opening, the hospital was only a level one special care nursery. Now the hospital is a level two and can treat a wider variety of sick infants.

“No expense was spared,” Schultz said. “We want to ensure our patients get the best money can buy. There are many safety features involved in the equipment design and our staff has been trained accordingly.”

Hours before its ceremonial ribbon cutting, a patient had already been admitted to the Naval Hospital’s new special care nursery.

“This is a great day for Naval Hospital Camp Lejeune and the community,” said Navy Capt. David Lane, the commanding officer of the hospital. “Across the board, the hospital will be a more vibrant and colorful place because of this facility.”

Some of the more than 200 babies delivered per month aboard the installation are prematurely born and require neonatal services, something the Naval Hospital relied on partner hospitals to provide. With the opening of the new nursery, the Naval Hospital will be able to care for some of those babies as young as 32 weeks gestation. With the ribbon cutting on Tuesday, Camp Lejeune became the first naval facility in 30 years to receive a new special care nursery.

“This is the first step in a number of steps to provide a whole new spectrum of care to our patients in the Camp Lejeune area,” Lane said.

Through partnering with local hospitals such as New Hanover Regional Medical Center and Coastal Carolina Neonatologist group, the Naval Hospital is capable of providing full-service, 24-7 neonatal care, Lane said.

“Without this partnership we would only be able to provide a part-time neonatal facility,” Lane said. “The partnership creates a win-win scenario for us and the surrounding community.”

Continuity of care will now be more fluid with babies being able to remain under one roof and receive an excellent standard of care, Lane said.

“We are not an intensive care unit such as New Hanover,” Lane said. “We’re still going to be referring babies … but we expect to keep about half of what we used to transfer.”

The goal of the unit is to take care of more babies and limit the amount transferred to outside facilities, said Cmdr. Cynthia Schultz, a neonatologist from Sneads Ferry.

“Not only are the families stressed because their newborn baby is sick but also because they often have to travel from Camp Lejeune to a hospital an hour and a half away,” Schultz said. “Keeping … the families together will help with their bonding and allow us to provide excellent care.”

The nursery’s opening has been approximately six years in the making and will save approximately $108,000 worth of tax dollars by not having to transport the infants to another facility, said Schultz. Base officials could not be reached to confirm the cost of the new nursery.

New equipment includes self-warming beds, which will keep the baby at an optimal temperatures, and biliruben lights, which treats jaundice.

Prior to Tuesday’s opening, the hospital was only a level one special care nursery. Now the hospital is a level two and can treat a wider variety of sick infants.

“No expense was spared,” Schultz said. “We want to ensure our patients get the best money can buy. There are many safety features involved in the equipment design and our staff has been trained accordingly.”

Among the safety features is software that prevent medicine errors, she said.

The best equipment is worthless without an amazing staff, Schultz said.

Staff was trained specifically for taking care of neonates as young as 32 weeks gestation.